Lake Park keeps pace in UEC by downing South Elgin
Lake Park took the trifecta.
Quarterback Larry Nawrot returned after a week resting a foot injury and threw touchdown passes of 60 and 24 yards to Artie Monaco.
Those were the big blows that earned Lake Park a 20-15 win on Friday over South Elgin in Roselle. With it Lake Park (6-1, 5-0) gained its first playoff slot since 2006 and kept pace with St. Charles East for the Upstate Eight Conference lead.
"I haven't been 100 percent for awhile," said Nawrot, a left-handed senior. "I've been like 60, 77 percent. I'm 85 now, it feels good. My foot feels real good and I'm starting to be able to do everything."
Nawrot's joy was opposite the mood of South Elgin (5-2, 2-2). Many of the Storm players attended a wake before the game Friday for the older brother of junior linebacker Justin Wright. Matt Wright, a 2008 South Elgin graduate, died Monday after a two-year battle with cancer.
"I came out here, played for him," said Justin, who wore No. 1, his older brother's number in baseball. "It was hard, but I left it all on the field for him. I have the greatest support system in the world. Friends, family, teammates, everything. They're all there for me all the time."
Receiver Eric Kumerow was there to haul in a 24-yard John Menken touchdown pass to get the Storm on the board first, at 6:26 of the second quarter. The Storm led 8-0 on a conversion pass to Dillon Gardner from Sean McGinn.
Monaco, who also ran 18 times for 125 carries, set up Lake Park's first touchdown, a 4-yard run from Clay Cooper behind guard Matt Kaiser. Nawrot ran in the conversion for the 8-8 tie at halftime.
"My offensive line did the perfect thing for me - they opened up semitruck-huge holes," Monaco said. "And those two beautiful passes by Larry, it was just phenomenal, because I didn't have to break stride."
Alex Fischer's interception late in the third quarter led to a 14-8 Lake Park lead. Nawrot looked the defense off right and threw left to Monaco, who caught the ball in stride and went 60 yards.
A Cooper interception got the Lancers the ball back, and Nawrot hit Monaco, a 5-foot-9 senior, for a 24-yard touchdown pass and 20-8 lead.
The Storm pulled within 20-15 at 4:26 of the fourth quarter on Robbie Green's 103-yard interception return for touchdown.
It was a monumental play that, on a different day for South Elgin, could have been a cause for celebration.
In a bigger sense, Storm coach Dale Schabert felt, it was.
"The scoreboard was the only thing tonight that was disappointing. Nothing else was disappointing. It was a great moment. These kids all grew up a ton tonight," the veteran coach said.
"This game tonight had nothing to do with being 6-1, had nothing to do with anything down the road," Schabert said. "They were playing for someone that they care about. It was all for (Justin Wright). And it's not often when kids this young actually can see the big picture like that."